Mountains
by DarkAmbitions27
Summary: Matsuki Rai, a member of the Akatsuki, struggles to understand her feelings for the enigmatic Uchiha Itachi; only to have him return her feelings.


Disclaimer: DarkAmbitions27 does not own any Akatsuki member or Naruto character; they belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

Please enjoy...

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In the Akatsuki hideout, dinner was never a quiet affair. That was one of the many things that Matsuki Rai had come to appreciate over the duration of her stay.

The Akatsuki men had come to love her as their own as she felt the same way.

Nibbling her onigiri, she deliberated over her feelings for these men as they came to be since her arrival…

When she first arrived, everyone (with the exception of Tobi) was reserved and watched her with suspicion, as if, at any moment, she would turn around and murder them. Rai, of course, did not blame them. These men, the youngest being one year older than she was, would have never met someone with the extraordinary talents that the kunoichi possessed. Working solo on primarily, high-level, assassinations and in a group with Deidara and Sasori and duet, with Uchiha Itachi, Matsuki Rai had become one of the most feared members of the Akatsuki.

After months with the Akatsuki, they became the family she never had. Sasori and Deidara; the bickering brothers and best friends to Rai, Tobi; the family child, Hidan and Kakuzu; the entertaining uncles; Pein and Konan; feared parental units; Zetsu; the wandering sibling, Hoshigaki Kisame; the partner in crime and of course, Uchiha Itachi.

Rai could never understand thoroughly her feelings for Uchiha Itachi. Itachi was the most feared member of the Akatsuki; the lone Uchiha prodigy who slaughtered his clan and Master of the Mangekyou Sharingan. Her degree of feeling for the Uchiha was definitely beyond family; especially _different_ from what she felt for the other Akatsuki members. Whenever Rai thought of Itachi, a mix of chills and warmth filled her body. The idea of a romantic relationship with the Uchiha prodigy was impossible, to say the least. Uchiha Itachi must have been the most unapproachable person she had ever met; the twenty-one year old man radiated waves of coldness miles away. She sighed deeply and put down the onigiri.

Akasuna no Sasori observed the Akatsuki kunoichi in the seat next to his. She was looking desperately at the Sake bottle currently situated in front of his plate. Being her best friend, Sasori had come to be immune to this kunoichi's emotional habits and when she was suffering a problem or emotional distress, she had a tendency to attempt to intoxicate herself out of consciousness. For that reason, Sasori and Deidara, responsible for providing the headquarters with their rations, had avoided purchasing alcoholic beverages but, tonight, being Christmas Eve, the leader had requested that they buy a supply of Sake. Rai met his eyes and Sasori could see the silent begging in her burning silver eyes. Please _Sasori-kun, just one time… _She swiftly tried to make a grab for the bottle while distracting him with the intensity of her gaze, but, Sasori had conjured a chakra thread and pulled the bottle out of her reach. He shook his head and she returned it with a glare which quickly subsided to misery before composing herself again and returning to her onigiri. He frowned, not liking the circumstances.

A few days previously, Rai had conceded to her best friend that she possessed enhanced feelings for Uchiha Itachi and that she suffered a lot internally as a result of this. Though she would have had more success with asking Deidara for help on this particular topic, Deidara had not made a secret of his detest for Itachi. Sasori respected difference and personally had no problem with the Uchiha prodigy. He glanced over to the far left where Itachi sat. He was peacefully sipping tea and studying Rai face with slight concern. Sasori knew that the two had become close during the numerous high class assassinations that Leader sent them on and was almost sure that Itachi felt the same way but was too emotionally stunted to acknowledge it. Sasori glanced over at Rai, who was picking at her onigiri with her fingers and tapped her shoulder. She looked up and Sasori could see the distant tears welling in her silver orbs. He sighed and poured a little of the Sake in her goblet. _Just this once…_he thought. She smiled a little before reaching for the glass.

Deidara turned to Sasori, confused. "Why'd you do that, Danna?" he asked.

Sasori glared at him. "She can't get drunk off half a glass of Sake," Sasori returned.

"But now, we'll have to leash her so she doesn't get up in the middle of the night and ravish the pantry for Sake, yeah," Deidara said. "Just leave her be…" the red-haired puppet master said. _I have a feeling she will need it tonight…_

After dinner, Rai made her way to the roof of the Akatsuki hideout after ditching her coat in her room. The night air had a cold draft in it but she didn't care_. I wouldn't care if I froze to death up here, it's too beautiful…_The Akatsuki headquarters looked over a mountain range and a small lake there. It was usually covered in greenery but at this time of the year, it look all dead but even that had a beauty to it. She lay down on the cold plated roof and stared up at the moon, thinking.

Over the course of time, Itachi and Rai had gotten very close, well; as close as one could get to the reserved Uchiha and some strange things had happened. Recently, while they were on a mission, Itachi had taken a would-have-been-fatal kunai shot to save Rai. She, of course, healed him and scolded him. Another time, Itachi had painfully and brutally murdered a shinobi, whom they had encountered on their travels, who had _looked_ at Rai the _wrong_ way, with the Mangekyou Sharingan.

There were also some sweet and funny moments that they shared. The thought of one particular one, involving a bored Tobi, accentuated the air with the glorious sound of Rai's giggles. Tobi had somehow convinced them to watch a movie with him and, in the end, Rai had fallen asleep on Itachi's shoulder and Tobi had fallen asleep on her lap and Itachi had fallen asleep with his arm unconsciously draped around Rai waist. Luckily, Itachi had woken up first and removed his arm and gotten up before anyone could see them but Konan had already caught that on picture and had nicknamed it: 'The Dysfunctional Family.' Rai reached into her pocket and pulled the picture out. Itachi looked so peaceful when he slept. Rai reached out to touch his face when a voice, the very voice that plagued her mind never endingly, sounded through the air.

Uchiha Itachi's melodious baritone brought chills to Rai's neck and she flushed furiously. "That's certainly an interesting picture," he said, looking down at her. Rai shot up and flushed again after realising what she had just been caught doing. "I…uh…was…" She sighed and looked back up at Itachi who was staring at her with an amused look on his face. He shrugged off his coat and draped it lightly around her shoulders which were inappropriately covered, with a sleeveless, dark purple tank top, for this weather. "You will catch a cold," he said. "Ariagatou, Itachi-san," she replied pulling the coat closer around her body. It was drenched in Itachi fresh, masculine rain water scent and the instantaneous warmth it provided was certainly appreciated. Itachi nodded, motioning to the space next to her, "May I?" She nodded and her heart sped.

Uchiha Itachi looked absolutely wondrous in the moonlight. His dark grey t-shirt clung to his lean abdomen and his net undershirt contrasted greatly against his skin and matched his usual black shinobi pants. His bangs hung loosely in their usual fashion and his low-ponytail looked lightly ruffled in the cold wind. The Sharingan blazed in the night and then disappeared when he closed his eyes, inhaling deeply…Itachi never looked so…perfect. She sighed and turned to the mountainous landscape in the distance. It was Itachi, whose chakra signature she had followed to find him sitting on the roof, months ago. It was from that point on that she had made a habit of coming here every night after dinner, but, not once, had she actually, found him up here during this time.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Rai asked turning to Itachi, breaking the silence. Itachi turned his head to her and open his eyes to reveal his charcoal grey eyes and Rai gasped. She had never seen his eyes and she was certain no one in the Akatsuki had.

He looked at her thoughtfully. Itachi could never quite comprehend why he felt so comfortable around this kunoichi. Tonight, he was surprised to have found her sitting in the cold, with nothing but a dark purple top and her black Capri pants. But what had surprised him more, was that, he had decided to join her on the roof. He returned his gaze to the distance. "It's beautiful how the moon reflects on the water of the lake and how the cold wind makes everything move simultaneously," she continued looking over the landscape. "It is…" he agreed. She looked at him with her silver eyes and that was when he new.

Rai stared into Itachi's dark orbs and saw the flicker of ignition, of some sort, pass there. Rai wished that she could sit here forever and watch how the wind played with Itachi's hair, or better yet, that she could run to her room, get her sketch pad and capture his perfection on paper. She didn't know how long the pair sat there staring searchingly into each others' eyes but she swore, no matter how medically impossible, that her heart stopped, when he reached up to her face.

Itachi slowly and tenderly brushed a strand of Rai's raven hair that had, momentarily, obscured his vision of her liquid silver eyes. His hand lingered at her shoulder for a little while and then he sighed. He dropped his arm to her waist and pulled her to sit in front of him, with her back to him.

Now, Rai thought she had died. Here they were: Rai and Itachi on the roof, observing the landscape…and she was more or less _sitting_ on his _lap, _but, somehow, she knew.

Uchiha Itachi had never been quite affiliated with putting forward his emotions. At this moment, he wasn't really sure what to do, except; tell her. His lack of emotional experience shouldn't cause her to suffer. When he came up here and caught her staring at the picture, he was sure she felt the same way. Now, all he had to do was, find words.

"Rai, I am not sure…how…to…ah…say this…but I feel rather strongly about you and I…aa…think that…I…" She listened to his struggle to find words, _the Uchiha Itachi rambling…_It was cute, but, she spared him the torture by turning around, reaching up and placing one finger against his lips. He raised a perfect eyebrow and she smiled kindly.

"I know and I feel the same way, but, you knew that already." Those words were magic in his world…They made him feel complete. He removed her finger and placed his lips on hers.

The world was frozen for that moment. The kiss sealed it. Matsuki Rai, for the first time in her life, believed that love is in the air at Christmas time.

The couple was lying on the roof when the first droplet of ice fell between them. Rai looked at Itachi, who was smiling ever so slightly. "Snow, Itachi-kun," she whispered. Itachi pulled her closer to him and whispered in her ear:

"Merry Christmas, Rai-chan."

"Merry Christmas, Itachi-kun."

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Merry Christmas everyone!

I hope you enjoyed that story and reviews will certainly be appreciated.

Rai Matsuki is my eighteen year old OC, just to clear any doubts.

Thanks for reading!


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